


loving you (is a losing game)

by haunted_dragon



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, dreamnotfound - Fandom
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Body Dysphoria, Dadza Minecraft, Gender Dysphoria, Implied/Referenced Torture, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mob AU, Other, POV Alternating, POV Multiple, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Psychological Torture, Violence, ages are not fully based off irl, salem is nonbinary and uses they/them, sapnap x oc, sexual chapters will have warning at top and only involve ADULT characters, sleepy boys inc is a family, techno uses he/they, tommy and tubbo are twins, wilbur and fundy aren't related
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:55:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28998615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haunted_dragon/pseuds/haunted_dragon
Summary: Sorry about the delay my beta couldn't keep being one for me and i had to keep going over to make sure i didn't mess anything up. I also apologise if it reads kinda weird i haven't written in a while so i'm rusty. if you find anything i can fix up that would be greatly appreciated <3 thanks for reading
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), dreamnotfound - Relationship, sapnap/oc
Kudos: 9





	1. Nightmares and Daydreams

_ 16 years later _

  
  


Phil sat on the roof of the abandoned building, watching the sky lighten as the sun began to rise. He watched it change and kept waiting, knowing they would be there soon.

Sixteen years had passed since everything fell apart. Since he’d grown his wings. Since his son killed his wife. He didn’t blame him but sometimes it hurt to see her in his son’s eyes and laugh, knowing she’d never be coming back.

The glowing skyline was still tinted, strange colours depending on the angle of the sun, from the clouds of killer gas. Many people were killed by it, often in their own ‘secure’ buildings from poor ventilation. The survivors came together and created a safe haven, using trees and mosses cultivated by scientists to filter the air and clear the ventilation. The once large city had shrunk down to a population of only a few thousand. 

Most of those who made it to the haven were the families and friends of the scientists or the wealthy and powerful, leaving those without as many resources to perish. A strange discovery was made, however. Some people were almost completely immune and only had a few symptoms. Those people, Phil and his son amongst them, had strange traits. Like the monstrous children that had been found, they had the abilities and characteristics of creatures from stories and life around them. 

They had been watched closely and when they were deemed safe they had been accepted with open arms, given jobs and places in the haven. Phil had lied about what he was. His wings were obvious so he claimed he was avian, some type of bird with strange colouring, but deep down he knew it was something dangerous and frightening. Something that would get him locked up with the ‘Hostiles’, as the scientists called them. He’d hidden his son, Wilbur’s, powers and claimed his son just survived by chance and his wife died before the events. 

When him and Wilbur were cleared they went past a room with a child Will’s age inside. He was clearly like them, with the features of some kind of pig or boar. His hair was a light pink colour and his feet were hooves. He had two little tusks that gave him a bit of an underbite. Phil had smiled at him and walked in with Will.

“Hi. I’m Phil. What’s your name?” He knelt next to the child, gesturing for Will to play with him.

“‘M Techno… Are you here to take me away?” He looked up with nervous eyes, fidgeting with his hands.

Phil shook his head. “I’m not taking you anywhere. This is my son Wilbur. Where are your parents at?”

Wilbur smiled big and held up his hand. “I turned this many three?” he looked up at Phil, who nodded with a smile. “Three days ago!”

Techno’s eyes got big. “We have the same birthday. And my mommy and daddy got sick from the weird smoke that appeared and got taken away. I was put here when they got taken and was told to wait,” Techno handed a toy to Wilbur “Do you wanna play with me?” Wilbur smiled and nodded and grabbed the toy and began to play with him.

Phil’s heart broke for the child and he got up and went to an official nearby. “What’s gonna happen to that little boar kid in that room? His parents died, right?”

The official peaked in and nodded. “We’re gonna look for a family to foster him but it’s hard to get a family to foster a fre- Peaceful, I mean,” They corrected quickly, looking at Phil’s wings.

Phil ignored the insult. “Can I take him in? I’ll be able to raise him. He’s already made friends with my son.”

They shrugged. “Fine by me. Just make sure you report him if he ends up being a Hostile.” 

Phil shot them a dark look as they walked away and walked back to his children. “Hey Techno. I guess I am here to take you away. I’m gonna take care of you now,” He knelt down in front of the boys. “Is that okay with both of you?”

Techno smiled big, showing off his tusks, “Yeah! I like Will. He's fun,”

Will nodded, “I like him too, daddy.”

Phil smiled and scooped up his sons, not realising this would label him as the one who took in the lost, orphaned children.

Phil was pulled out of the memories by the slight rustling behind him. The sound of leathery wings folding closed, “You’re late, Scales. The sun is almost fully up.”

Scales snorted and walked behind him, “I had a late night. But I can’t ever sneak up to you huh, Feathers?” They joined him on the ledge, coiling their tail behind themself. It had been Scales’ idea to use the nicknames in case they were heard during these meetings.

Phil laughed, glancing at the dragon. “Raising five boys does that to you. Nothing ever gets past me.” He stretched his wings, feeling the joints pop.

Scales glanced at them. “Careful, old man. You’ll break one and I’ll have to take you home and help you explain to your little troup why you’re hanging out with the ‘insane’ Hostile,” they sneered, their tail lashing in anger. Phil scooted to the side to avoid being hit by it.

“I’m not that old, you know. And I’ve tried to get them to not be so aggressive at you guys, Scales. Will and Techno got it pretty quick but Tommy is almost hyper aggressive to them. He insists he knows more about Hostiles than I do.” Phil rolled his eyes, gesturing to both his wings and Scales. “Obviously the seventeen year old who’s never met a proper Hostile knows more about them than his  _ actual  _ Hostile father who hangs out with one on the regular.” Scales let out a harsh laugh that sounded like they were scraping their throat on the way out. 

Phil looked at the dragon. “Are you ever going to tell me how you got out? Or why they label you specifically as the insane one?” He knew the subject was touchy but he really needed to know to prove his sons wrong. 

Scales’ face went stony and they got up quickly, spreading their wings. Dark scales crawled over their face, creating a dark mask to hide any features that would betray their emotions. “Why don’t you draw in for weeks at a time and see what happens to you. Then you’d know why.”

Phil flinched, imagining what would happen if he hid himself fully for longer than even an hour. “They made you do that? You were a  _ child _ ,” Disgust filled his voice as his chest ached for them. “Drawing in for even an hour hurts and drives me mad.”

Scales watched the skyline. “It’s why I can’t anymore. I have to go now. Will you enjoy the sunrise for me? You never know how many you have left anyways.” They spread their wings and flew away, on almost silent wings, without waiting for a response. 

Phil nodded, watching them disappear and watched the sunrise for them, mind reeling over how they had revealed what happened to them and their friends in the facility. What could’ve happened to him and Wilbur had he not hid them.

***

They flew quickly, sticking to the shadows, before finding the sewer pipe with the broken gate and darting inside. Salem let out a shaky breath and closed the gate so it looked locked and untouched and took a few minutes to calm down, trying not to relive the eight years of torture and tests they had to deal with before escaping with their family.

When they finally calmed down they flew to the main intersection where all the pipes joined to the main. Where Salem and their friends had made their home. It was used for the abandoned apartments that most the victims of the gas lived in so it wasn’t used anymore and they didn’t have to worry about the smell or it being flooded with sewage. 

Salem knocked their wing joint against a pipe to announce their presence and sat down. Sapnap grumbled and put his pillow over his head. “‘S too early. Go back out.” 

Salem snorted. “It's sunrise. And just because I’m back doesn’t mean you have to wake up. It just means I’m home and the sun is out.” They folded their wings and wrapped up in their blanket and laid down. All of their stuff from their beds, to their clothes, to their lighting had been taken from the abandoned homes above them. After they buried or cremated the bodies and thanked them, of course. 

Sapnap grumbled and peeked out at them, his amber eye turning gold in the light. “Dream makes us get up when you go to bed so someone is always awake and ready to defend. Which is stupid because you don’t even stay here. You fly all night,” he stretched and fixed his headband. “How’s my hair?”

Salem yawned and brought their feet up, curling up like a cat, “You look fine. And it’s not my fault you three are diurnal. Someone apparently takes the term literally.” They looked at the other bed where Dream had woken up and was giving them the stink eye.

“I don’t even know what diurnal means,” George whined. “Do I have to be it?” He sat up and squinted in the light. His creature was a large, blind goliath with extreme hearing. Even when he drew most of it in his eyes were extremely sensitive to light, their pale blue announcing it to the world.

“Diurnal is the opposite of nocturnal, stupid. You’re literally always going to diurnal. You can’t help it.” Salem closed their eyes and fell asleep as the others woke up and changed into their regular clothes. Sapnap was forced to watch as Dream and George not so subtly watched and tried not to watch each other change. He made a face and wished one of them would just bite the damn bullet already and admit their feelings so he didn’t have to feel like the third wheel of a bad fanfiction. 

***

Sapnap looked down at Salem and gently brushed their hair out of their face, looking at them when they weren’t guarding their emotions and building up walls to hide who they really were. He smiled at them, keeping his hand on their cheek. He gently built up his ability, warming his hands without burning Salem. 

Out of the four of them he had the most control and easiest time with his ability, able to draw in and express it whenever he wanted to. Dream said it was because he didn’t have as many traits or difficulties while expressing and because he didn’t have as much emotional baggage with his like him and Salem. 

Sapnap half agreed and half thought it was because whatever he was was just something made of or in control of fire so he could express himself by giving himself a fever for normal people or by using the fire in his hands to set things on fire or light dark areas. He liked his ability because of how useful it was and how he could use it to warm and protect the three people he loved most in the world.

He was still watching Salem when Dream threw his socks at his head. “Hey, loverboy. Stop staring at them and come here. You and I are heading up top to look for more clothes. Salem shredded another shirt and I don’t think any of us wants to risk getting one of ours shredded.” Dream held up the shirt, showing the massive tears in the back from Salem’s wings.

Sapnap turned red and pulled away from Salem. “Says you. And why do I have to come along? Those houses freak me out. I don’t wanna find another dead person,” He shuddered.

“Because I said so and you’re the best at guessing what Salem likes seeing as they keep whatever you bring home to them.” He nodded towards the pile of stuffed animals, knick knacks, and other random junk Sapnap had brought home to them. Sapnap turned red and tossed a blanket with a picture of a puppy over it to hide it.

George laughed. “Or maybe Salem has bad taste and just likes whatever Sapnap brings home to them.” He was turned around organising the million pairs of shoes he had so he didn’t notice the pillow Sapnap threw at him until it smacked him in the face.

“Shut your mouth. At least they don’t have a collection of shoes that can’t be worn.” Sapnap pulled on his worn, yet comfortable, sneakers and grabbed his hoodie. “Let's go Dream,” he relaxed and felt his ability shift to the rest of his body. “You want anything, Gogy?” He said, mimicking Dream’s voice as well as he could.

“I don’t sound like that,” Dream grumbled and looked at George who shook his head and went back to his shoes. “Okay, we can go now. Let’s be quick in case this is another ‘Salem only sleeps for a couple hours and gets in a fight with George over organization’ day.” He winked at George and walked to the ladder that put them in the middle of the apartments.

Sapnap climbed up and moved the manhole cover and waited for Dream to climb out before moving it back over. They moved to the sidewalk and walked in a loop to make it look less like they appeared out of nowhere. They passed two teenagers, one tall, blond, and grumpy looking. The other one was shorter, brunet, and had a sweet smile. The shorter one waved at them as they passed by and Sapnap noticed two little horns on his head and two small iridescent wings on the back of the taller one. He waved back to him and watched the boys go into a building that looked slightly cleaner than the others. He pointed to it and looked at Dream. “Do you think people live in that building now?”

Dream shrugged. “Probably, since those kids went inside it but I’m sure the others are empty. We just have to avoid that one from now on.” He looked from side to side and opened the door and walked inside the abandoned building. Sapnap made a small flame in his hand for some light and began searching the rooms, looking for clothes and other stuff that would be nice to have in their home. He occasionally had to break the knob off some apartments that were locked but luckily didn’t find a body or the remains of one.

He was in his fifth apartment, owned by what looked like a very rich person, when he found a strange sweater that looked like it had been made for someone with large wings. It was grey and completely backless with a collar that could easily stretch and fit over their head and horns. There was also a string that could be used to tie it closed if somehow the collar ripped. He put it in his bag and looked around, finding two more, one black and the other white, and made sure they were folded nicely.

Pleased with what he found he looked around for some nice bottoms that they would all like and added some shorts and sweats to the bag. He was in the closet of the biggest bedroom and found a cape. It was made of silver silk and seemed to pool like a puddle of mercury when it slipped out of his hands. He held it to his back and spread it a bit to imitate how Salem’s wings would be underneath and cheered when he saw it would cover them as long as Salem kept them closed.

Dream peeked his head inside. “What did you yell about? Did you see another spider? You’re literally able to control fire just burn it.” He walked in and looked at him. “Whoa. That’s awesome. And it’s so smooth! It feels slippery.”

Sapnap laughed. “No kidding! It actually is slippery. I dropped it when I first grabbed it. Do you think Salem will like it? I think they could use it to cover their wings and the base of their tail and they could go out during the day. I also found these sweaters. They’re basically meant for someone with wings.” He lifted one and showed it to Dream.

Dream nodded. “They’ll love it but you're forgetting something,” He tapped the top of his head. “Salem has horns. And nothing on earth has horns like that except maybe a defective goat.” He handed the cape back to Sapnap. 

Sapnap looked down at it. “Oh. I forgot. I guess they don’t ever really come up y’know? Their wings and tail are more noticeable,” He looked around for a hat and found a simple black beanie. “This could work with the outfit, right?” He showed it to Dream.

Dream snorted. “You just got them the most homosexual outfit possible. They’ll probably make out with you when you show it to them.” He teased, grabbing the winter jackets, not noticing Sapnap’s blush. “Do you think George would like this? It seems like something he would wear, right?” He lifted a pale blue sweater, a shade or two darker than George’s eyes. “I also found him these glasses. They’re super dark so maybe they can help his eyes.” He handed Sapnap the white glasses. The lenses were almost pure black and when he put them on he could barely see.

“Holy shit. If these don’t help his eyes the only thing that would would be just glueing them shut. He’d love that sweater too. The one he has right now is kinda tattered. The winter jackets would be nice too since you two can’t always be cuddled up to me.” He smirked and stuck his tongue out, getting an elbow to the ribs. “Hehe. Ow…”

Dream laughed and put the sweater and winter jackets in his bag, making sure the glasses he found wouldn’t get broken. “That’s all we need, right? Just some new jackets, some pants, and stuff for Salem? Can you think of anything else we’d need?”

Sapnap shook his head, looking around. “It’s a shame we can’t live in one of these. Salem’s too fidgety and if we got caught because I made some fire or Salem went out to fly we’d all be killed on sight.” He remembered the day they escaped more vividly than he’d remembered anything and still had nightmares of that night and he only saw the aftermath, not what had actually happened. Only one person saw what happened and they wouldn’t say a single word.

Dream elbowed him again, softer this time. “Hey. Flashback later. We gotta get home before we get caught.” He walked out of the apartment and made his way downstairs, avoiding the creaky steps and sticking to the shadows around the windows. Sapnap followed, trying to copy everything he did but it was kinda hard when he was shorter and didn’t have the same long ass legs. He glanced out the window at the building he’d seen the kids go into and saw a flicker of grey-blue feathers in the window. When he looked back up the window was empty. 

***

Carrying the bag loaded with jackets and other clothes on his back, Dream peeked out into the street. When he saw the coast was clear, him and Sapnap ran to the manhole and moved it to the side quickly. They had spent too long inside the apartments and the sun was directly above them, leaving almost no shadows for them to hide in. Dream grabbed both the bags and jumped straight down, ignoring the ladder altogether. Sapnap closed the cover and climbed down next to Dream and grabbed his bag. 

“Wuss,” Dream snorted. “Scared of a twisted ankle?”

Sapnap glared at him. “If I twisted or broke my ankle we’d all be screwed because none of us knows how to set a bone and Salem refuses to use the manhole to leave.” Dream sighed and rolled his eyes, choosing to be silent for the rest of the walk. He went over in his head how to give the glasses to George and wondered if he should use them as an excuse to ask him out. He still hadn’t made up his mind when he made it back to their home. He took a moment to look at it and smiled, knowing his family had found their space and nothing would ever take it from them.

Sapnap knocked on the pipe, pulling Dream out of his moment. “We’re back and got some stuff. We think you’ll like them,” He walked over to Salem’s bed and laid down the things he had gotten them.

Dream walked over to George and showed him the new sweater. “I thought you’d like it. I know you like the colour blue and your current sweater has seen better days and since it’s the middle of fall and it’s gonna start getting cold I figured you’d need a new one.,” He blabbered, almost unable to stop talking to explain a reason he got it that wasn’t ‘I’m madly in love with you and every day I don’t tell you makes my heart feel like it’s going to burst from my chest’.

George laughed and took it. “Thank you, Dream. Blue is my favourite colour. It’s soft too!” He pulled off the old one and pulled on the new one. “It’s big too. If I had to I could wear the old one underneath to stay warm.”

“You’d put Sapnap out of the job then,” Dream teased softly, a dopey smile taking over his face. “I have something else, too. I think you’ll like it even more than the sweater.” He reached into the bag and pulled out the glasses and held them up to him so he could see them.

George squinted and leaned in. “Sunglasses? Thank you?” He took them and looked down at them skeptically. “I know you mean well but these won’t work. We’ve tried them already.”

Dream laughed and put them on. “You didn’t try these ones, stupid. I think they’ll help more than you think,”

George looked around and gasped. “I can see! And it doesn’t even hurt my eyes and I don’t have to squint anymore! Dream, I love these! I love your gifts.” He said earnestly, looking up at Dream, the affection in his eyes hidden by the glasses. 

Dream smiled and patted his back and went to his bed and sat down the bag, choosing to organise the rest of the stuff later. He laid back and stared at the ceiling, which Salem had decorated with glow-in-the-dark stars and planets, light strips, wind chimes, and just about anything else they could find to stick or hang up there to hide the stained and cracked concrete. His mind began to wander and went back to  _ that _ day. The one that had caused all of this. He remembered the pain and fear and turning to find his parents dead behind him. Dead because they dared to try and help him. 

He knew he was also to blame for George, Sapnap, and Salem. They recalled seeing bright balls of light, teal, orange, and purple, before they felt the same agony and destroyed everything around them. He remembered the facility, how the air had always smelled of bleach and disinfectant. How all the walls, floors, tables, and doors had been a bright white that was always stained by their touch, no matter how soft or slight. The bright fluorescent lights that seemed to make everything brighter and more painful. How it agonised George, who could hardly handle the flickering light of a candle sometimes.

He blamed himself for all of that. For almost an entire city being killed. He blamed himself for Salem’s anxiety and fear around anyone beside the three of them. For Salem being completely unable to hide what they were. For them becoming a murderer at age eleven just to help them escape the torture. In his shame, as punishment for what he did to his parents, and for what he did to his new family, he hid his ability. He always had it drawn in. He never used it or risked doing anything that could possibly trigger it to release. The others hardly knew what it was and forgot he even had an ability most of the time, not that he cared. He preferred to hide it, to accept he was nothing more than a human who had the ability to kill.

Better to feel like a monster than to actually be one.

**. . . . .**

As the sun set and the moon rose, Salem opened their eyes and woke up. They untangled their tail from the blankets and stretched their wings, making sure to fix any jammed joints and stretch out the creases in the membranes.

“You know,” Sapnap teased. “If you slept upside down like a bat you wouldn't have to do that every time you woke up.”

Salem made a face and grunted at him, “Good evening to you, too. What’s this?” They lifted the bag with the sweaters, cape, and beanie.

Sapnap lit up and bounded over. “Why don’t you take a look? I think you’ll appreciate them very much,” He pulled out the sweaters and lined them up. “See? They’re backless! You can wear them and not worry about your wings tearing them apart. And, say, if you wanted to go out during the day on a walk with me, or any of us, you could wear these to cover your wings and your horns.” He handed them to Salem. 

Salem looked at Sapnap and stood up, turning around so they could change and use their wings as a privacy screen. Sapnap averted his eyes until Salem turned around. “Does it look good?” They murmured, their tail twitching in discomfort and nerves.

Sapnap looked at them and tilted his head to see it was the perfect size to hide most of their skin. “It looks amazing. Do you like it?”

Salem smiled, showing their fangs. “It’s really comfortable. Thank you.” They put the cape over their wings and adjusted the beanie so it covered their horns comfortably. They glanced at Sapnap and quickly hugged him, knocking the wind out of him in the process, and took off before they could say or do anything else stupid.

They flew out quickly, making sure to close the gate, and flew towards the forest that had become their sanctuary. The trees there provided many perches and hiding places and nobody ever went in from fear of the toxins in the air killing them or from something more sinister lurking in the shadows.

This was where Salem went every night. Where they would hide and practise their ability. They usually focused on controlling their scales, either hardening the ones on their back and tail for defensive purposes, or the ones that covered their body. They had almost mastered the facial scales to hide their emotions and identity by now and were focusing more on their hands, turning them from frail and soft human hands to the dangerous and deadly talons of a dragon. 

They watched as one by one each of their fingers was encased in black and began to lengthen and thicken, getting stronger as the bones and muscles shifted inside their skin. Their nails were encased in black, almost like nail polish, and sharpened to inch long talons meant for killing and tearing apart prey. Or enemies. They were focusing on how to get it to come as quickly as the ‘masking scales’, as they called it, when they sensed something nearby. Whatever it was wasn’t like any creature Salem had encountered yet. 

It radiated the same nervous tension of a deer but underneath they sensed the danger of a wolf. Trying not to startle the creature Salem pretended to stay focused on their hands, putting their energy into making their wings and tail stronger and harder in case it attacked. Salem listened for any sounds of shifting branches or leaves, any signs of it getting ready to pounce or charge. At the snap of a branch Salem lunged, talons ready to kill.

Instead of some strange predator trying to hunt them, Salem found a terrified man, close to Sapnap and their age. Trying not to disembowel them Salem twisted, using the added weight of their wings and tail to slow them or make them drop. Their tail hit something very warm, solid, and alive and they skidded across the leaf litter of the forest.

The man was knocked into a tree but didn’t seem to have any injuries except, perhaps, brain damage for sneaking up on something with wings, claws, and a tail in the DARK. 

Salem got up and put on their mask and walked towards the man. “Who the hell are you!? How stupid do you have to be to sneak up on someone or something in the middle of a DARK FUCKING FOREST!” They yelled, spreading their claws. “I almost killed you! I might kill you anyways but it would be your fault!”

The man trembled and looked at them up and down. “I came here because I was looking for you. I-I’ve seen you flying by and I wanted to meet you. Please don’t kill me.” He covered his head in fear.

Salem deflated a bit. “You came. To see  _ me _ ?” They sniffed the air and checked his ears and eyes to make sure he wasn’t concussed.

He nodded. “Yeah. I’ve been wanting to meet you for some time. You’re the forest guardian. You keep out the animals that would’ve killed us. You kept my mother and I safe. My mother calls you our guardian angel. She would love to meet you,” He stood slowly and brushed the dirt from his pants and looked at Salem. “You’re a lot shorter than we thought you were.”

Salem backed up, their head spinning with all this information. “Thanks? I get that a lot. It’s because of the wings and horns. I think,” They looked at him, checking for any signs of an ability or a weapon. “What’s your name? And how are you out here? Isn’t the gas toxic to you?”

The man chuckled. “We’re in a forest, angel. The trees filter the air even without being modified to. And after sixteen years it’s thinned out. It’s still toxic but not as deadly. It’s like the difference between being stuck in an airtight box and someone smoking or walking past someone smoking on the sidewalk and inhaling the smoke. Still dangerous but, less.” He shrugged and smiled down at Salem.

Salem nodded, not knowing much about cigarettes or how they killed people, and watched him. “You still haven’t answered all my questions. Who are you?” They growled a bit.

The man laughed. “Me? If I give you my name you promise not to kill me, right?” Salem nodded, getting a grin in response.

“I’m Clay.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the delay my beta couldn't keep being one for me and i had to keep going over to make sure i didn't mess anything up. I also apologise if it reads kinda weird i haven't written in a while so i'm rusty. if you find anything i can fix up that would be greatly appreciated <3 thanks for reading


	2. Chapter 2

Prologue

The day the world ended began like any other regular day. The sun had come out, the mail was delivered, and Dream’s parents had made him his favourite breakfast, promising big big things.

Dream had had a pretty strange life for most five year old's but, to be fair, he wasn't most five year old's. From his name, to his birthday, to his intelligence, all the way down to his genes, he’d been meant for a greater purpose. His parents knew he would be the one to change everything. He just needed a trigger.

Dream’s mother smiled down at her son, asking about the dreams he’d had the night before, if he enjoyed his very very special breakfast, and if he was excited to grow up, simply stalling for her husband as he prepped the trigger needed to unlock his potential.

“You’re going to do great things one day, my love. Just go with your instincts,” she whispered as she pinned him to the chair, holding him still as her husband injected the needle into the side of Dream’s neck.

Dream whimpered, having the childhood fear of needles and shots every other child had, and scratched at the injection sight, trying to get the burning tingle to stop. He started to cry and panic as the burning went from a tingle to a throb and started to spread across his entire body, filling him with the sensation of burning from the inside out.

His parents watched in amazement as their son’s eyes turned bright white and the plates and cups around him began to rattle and shatter. Around them the air started to get the sensation of a thunderstorm and caused their hair to start frizzing up. Dream called out for them and reached for them, trying to get comfort from the pain and fear but they stepped back, watching their little experiment grow and change.

In his pained and scared state, watching his own parents push him away when he needed them most Dream was filled with rage. He wanted his parents to feel his pain. He didn’t want to be the only one who felt like they were melting from the inside out.

His parents' excitement turned to horror as brightly coloured balls of lights shot from his body, hovering in the air like a small galaxy, before shooting out the windows and blowing the glass all over them. Two black clouds of a smoky substance wrapped around them, filling the house with the sounds of their screams before they were abruptly cut off and followed by two loud thuds.

Dream slowly calmed down as the pain disintegrated and turned to see his parents on the floor. Their bodies were pale and had shrunken down to their skeletons, showing each joint and bone. He got up and walked over, trying to shake them awake. When they didn’t he went to his neighbours house and told them his parents weren’t waking up. As his neighbour took his hand multiple loud explosions, with fire the same colours as the lights that had shot from Dream, filled the air, followed by screams of horror and pain. Dream was pulled inside and the door was locked shut.

. . . . . . .

Hours after Dream’s parents died the news turned on and talked about the multiple explosions that had turned into raging infernos, clouds of toxic gas, and some strange almost smoke-like clouds of purple and umber gases that, when walked into or breathed in, caused serious illness or death.

The perpetrators were found to be monstrous children with the features of demons and monsters from myth. For the safety of the surviving civilians the children were sent to a secure home for testing. It was asked of anyone if they saw or found a child like the ones that had been found they should be turned in immediately. 

When it was deemed safe Dream and his neighbour went to his parents’ bodies and upon finding the needle and the corpses that looked weeks, not hours old, Dream was reported to the authorities and taken to the testing center where he met the other three children who had been found. Two of the three were younger than Dream with the youngest being a shy three year old with small black and grey wings and a tail. The eldest two introduced themselves as George and Sapnap and said the youngest didn’t seem to have a name except for the fact they had been found on Salem street.


End file.
